Oblivion- The Weetzie Bat edition

For this Book Challenge I asked my daughter if she wouldn’t mind modelling that Versus Spring 2011 RTW Multi Color Cutout Dress she’s been lusting after, you see she’s a huge fan of Weetzie Bat the Cult Teen books written by Francesca Lia Block. The books are great, Lia Block paints a vivid picture of the character and L.A and what it was like growing up at that time, my daughter loves the way she dresses -thrifted and handmade clothes along with the relationship she has with Dirk and all of the ups and downs that occur through-out each book. You can read more about the books here. Below is a small excerpt to help set the scene.

My little madam squealed with pure delight at the thought of getting the dress she’s been wanting, I was quietly freaking out wondering if I could do it, ha!…it wasn’t easy. After seeing this Paper Magazine feature based on Weetzie Bats character my daughter has had this dress pinned to her creative board in her bedroom for a while. I said, okay Lets do it!

I made this dress based on the picture alone, self drafted, we couldn’t find a picture of the back so I improvised; using my daughters measurements, I made a muslin for the bodice first, once I got the pieces right I then untacked and used the pieces as my pattern. For the bodice I used broadcloth for the pieces and the lining, I couldn’t find these vibrant colours in any other fabric, I gathered that my fabric choice wouldn’t look too bad wrinkle-wise as it’s not an area that forms too many creases. I’m not too happy with the inside of the front bodice it’s not the neatest job, I’m not going to be too hard on myself though If I had longer than a week and didn’t work a full-time job I’d be happier with the inside of the dress. I have placed two star buttons on the right hand shoulder with accompanying loops for easy access. For the skirt section I used a low-sheen satin which hangs beautifully and is less prone to wrinkles which is what you want after you stand up and walk across the room to meet your Secret Agent Lover Man.

The skirts front meets up at the centre back but isn’t sewn closed all the way to the hem only to the zip. The back red section as you can see fastens to the two red buttons placed either side of the green exposed zip and ties closed at the front. I did a fair bit of hand sewing too, some of the stitching had to be hidden like the orange and blue triangles on the back and the two front pink triangles I hand stitched the lining to the bodice so there would be no indents seen from the front.

The fitting of the bodice and the triangle neck pieces were definitely the hardest. Overall I’m super happy with the outcome, confident that it doesn’t look handmade and there are no complaints with the fit either just pure happiness, loads of loving hugs and massive amounts of kisses filled with smiles. Yay!

My daughter is learning to sew too and wanted to contribute in some-way which I always encourage, I said have a go at making the headdress, she used the scraps to sew up the pattern, we sewed the feathers to the elastic using a leather needle and then placed the band over the top. Voila! Weetzie Bat is born.

She’s even chosen the sound track to her Weetzie Bat tribute- Oblivion by Grimes.

Love it. Not only is this a fabulous dress, truly awesome made in a week with you having a real life just from drawings…but the photoshoot is superb. Your daughter is such a natural, that must have been so awesome to do together. I agree with Gina the shot with her turning around is fantastic but I love the one in the supermarket the best. It looks like a still from a movie. Love how those back triangles meet the skirt. Fabulous!

It’s totally crazy with what you can manage in a week with work, home and kiddies, I sometimes shock myself with what I managed to pull-off the sewing machine. I’ve been super organised lately which helps.

The shoot was fantastic she sure is a natural, we were in and out of there in no time. I like the supermarket shot too. Thanks Tempest.

Amazing work, AGAIN! All those intricate little pieces, just wow. Love the poncho collar shirt from last week too, love how you get the rest of us thinking about taking more risks. I sewed for my daughter this week too but age five is unpredictable and we were a long way from hugs and smiles, sadly. You and your daughter give me hope for the future.

I like the comment from the person who is 50% Native American. Fashion has always been inspired by different cultures – why should there be an exception for Native American culture? Wouldn’t this be racist in a way?

Adorable! I have no clue about the character but now I have something to check out: ) How wonderful your daughter shares your interests and you hers. Maybe we’ll see the emergence of a mother/daughter design team?

About the Sew Weekly

The Sew Weekly began as Mena Trott's attempt to document the process of sewing all of her own clothes in 2010. In 2011, four other contributors (Debi Fry, Adey Lim, Veronica Darling & Sarah Gabbart) joined her and for 52 weeks, they sewed based on a particular weekly theme. In 2012, The Sew Weekly became a much larger group blog with over 130 contributors sewing along each week.